HearCare Rhode Island, Inc. offers diagnostic audiologic and rehabilitative services designed to meet the individual needs of our patients, especially the adult and geriatric population. Patients benefit from the caring, professional services provided by our licensed, certified audiologist and Ms. Duffy's years of experience working with persons with hearing loss and their families. The first step to better hearing is to have a complete hearing assessment. The diagnostic audiologic evaluation determines one's hearing ability across the frequency (pitch) range, as well as word recognition and discrimination scores. If a hearing loss is identified and use of amplification is warranted, then recommendations will be made to determine the most appropriate hearing aid solution. The selection of a hearing aid is extremely individual and depends on various factors, such as the severity of hearing loss, communication needs, daily lifestyle, manual dexterity and financial considerations. A thorough assessment of the individual's needs and preferences is essential for choosing the proper device. Couseling regarding the expected benefit and outcome with amplification also is important. Not everyone will achieve the same results with a given hearing aid due to variations in the clarity of the remaining hearing and the brain's ability to handle auditory information. HearCare Rhode Island, Inc. operates a complete hearing aid dispensing practice working with several of the top manufacturers of digital instruments. Digital hearing aids, which process sound using a computer chip, have clearer sound quality and a lower level of distortion than previous analog instruments. Different hearing aid models have special features, such as directional microphone systems, multiple program settings or noise reduction circuitry, to assist the hearing impaired individual to communicate better especially under less than ideal listening conditions. During the fitting process, Ms. Duffy will customizes the acoustic settings of the hearing aids based on the individual's specific hearing loss and communication needs. A 30-day assessment period then is provided with the chosen hearing aids allowing the patient to utilize the instruments in different listening environments prior to making a final decision regarding purchase. Feedback provided by the patient during the fitting process and subsequent visits assists the audiologist to fine tune the performance of the hearing aids. All new hearing aids dispensed by HearCare Rhode Island, Inc. are covered by a two-year manufacturer's repair warranty. Repair services also are available for all makes and models of hearing aids. HearCare Rhode Island, Inc. is a provider for most health insurances, including Medicare, Blue Cross, Blue Chip, United HealthCare, Tufts and Medicaid.